For about a half-century now, an MBA degree has served alumni well and the business community has benefited. Those who want to pursue an MBA education are faced with many questions and here are few frequently asked ones that I often receive from those exploring degree options.
Is this the right time?
Depending on where you are in your career, whether you have just graduated from college or have fifteen years of work experience, there is an MBA program fitting your career objectives and needs – as long as you are realistic about your expectations and have thoroughly researched the MBA programs you are targeting.
Depending on your professional stage, you probably want to study with people who have a similar length of work experience, relatively similar objectives, and bring diverse types of experience to the classroom environment. I do not mean that this should be like-minded people. Not at all. You want to be around people from different professional and academic walks of life.
However, if you are preparing for an executive role, you will not look forward to sitting in a class next to someone who just graduated from college and has limited work experience.
Is it a good investment?
You may want to know what your return on investment (ROI) will be. Joining a program will require a high degree of commitment – some programs last two years, and most MBA students will quit their jobs and move to a new city or state, or a different country.
Consider the cost of tuition, living expenses and opportunity cost because while in school you will not be earning a salary. You may land a short-term job or a paid internship during the summer break, but then it’s back to the classroom.
Consider how you will be able to support yourself during your MBA, while also considering lifestyle changes, and how long will it take you to pay for your education – although, the expectation of a higher salary will be on the horizon.
What type of MBA should I choose?
There are all different types and varieties of programs and curricula.
Here at the University of California, Riverside, we have both a full-time MBA program and a flex MBA program, which offer different preparation for students with varying professional experience.
Ultimately, you will want to apply to a program that can offer you the specific academic preparation that fits your career objectives, and offers a peer group from whom you can learn from and network with.
These experiences will serve you for the rest of your professional and personal life. Most strong MBA programs will be an intellectually provocative and transformational experience. Research the schools and determine the right fit for your professional objectives.
How will it enhance my job prospects?
I sincerely believe that education is still the number-one method for social and economic mobility. The importance of education is evident from many studies – including my latest research Determinants of FDI Flows within Emerging Economies – where I find that both economic growth and the level of skills offered by the local workforce correlates.
I recognize that there are the occasional Steve Jobs (Apple) or Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook) who find their success without a degree – but those are rare exceptions.
I see that entrepreneurship is on the rise among MBA graduates here in the US and in Europe. But at the same time MBAs are still sought after in the jobs market. When you utilize your time at business school wisely and deliberately, you can increase your prospects of landing a great job.
Make sure that in addition to your academic success you also participate regularly in all activities and networking events that your school’s career centre has to offer.
Here at the Anderson Graduate School of Management, those MBAs who regularly participated in career development activities from very early on in their programs walked away with highly developed networks – and job offers – in addition to their diplomas at graduation.
It pays to be an active and engaged MBA candidate from very early on in the process.
Arkadiusz Mironko is the executive director for graduate programs at the Anderson Graduate School of Management at the University of California, Riverside.
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